Talent vs. Skill

posted by Ruth Butterfield-Winter

If you had to choose between having talent or skill, what would you choose? Of course you would say, "I would rather have both." But, what if you could only have one, which would be better?

Some people are born into their talent; Both parents are doctors, the daughter might have a better understanding of medicine than a girl born of a pastry chef. And the pastry chef's daughter, most likely, will be a better cook. 'Not necessarily,' you might say, but it's possible; and does happen quite often. Let's say, the daughter of the doctor wants to learn the skill of baking. She can learn to bake and hone her skill to become a great pâtissiere.

I was thinking about talent vs. skill during our trip to Arizona. What about music? If you are saturated from an early age in music, maybe Mom played "Baby Einstein" on her tummy while you were in the womb. Or one or both of your parents were musicians, and you were born first (like me). Very likely, you would have a sense of music and have an innate talent for it. However, there is the possibility that even if your your environment, at an early age, was saturated with music, you may emerge with little or no talent. Your Mom or Dad may insist on giving you piano lessons and you just rebel, with a vengeance. But you find that you like to sing and you pursue that. Let's say, at first, people ask you to stop singing because it is so unbearable, but you're a kid and anything kids do, is darn cute. But as you get older, you just can't hold a pitch in a bucket! Can you acquire the skill to sing well?

I think you can. I believe that if anyone wants to do something bad enough, they will be able to do it. I believe that's called passion. With honest guidance from a professional and trusted teacher, an "untalented" musician can be taught the discipline of music. They can hone the skill. To develop a true ability to sing (or do anything) requires a lot more courage and push than someone needs if she has pure talent.

Superficially, talent is better. But, let's say you have the talent. If someone puts a piece of music in front of you and asks you to sing it or play it, you can easily read it or do a damn good job of faking your way through it. You have the talent to float by with minimal work. Relying on your talent is so dangerous, in my opinion. It is so easy for a person to go to rehearsals and "sight-read" every run-through. The "sight-reading" is not perfect, but it is good enough and the talent is there to make the rehearsal productive. But, what of the subtle mistakes. What of the intimacy of knowing the piece cold. Being able to make the part your own, with the control necessary, so that if nerves overwhelm you, you can fall back on the muscle memory and technique you developed in the practice room.

Yes, for me, if I had to choose between talent and skill, I would choose talent. But without skill, i.e. technique, practice, discipline, & passion; talent is meaningless.

What do you think?